


Waterproof Heart

by aretia



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Bathing/Washing, Grooming, M/M, Nudity, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-13
Updated: 2018-09-13
Packaged: 2019-07-11 17:01:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,832
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15976622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aretia/pseuds/aretia
Summary: Haxus isn't sure that drawing a bath is typical of lieutenant duties. He doesn't know whether his new commander is hazing him... or quite possibly flirting with him? Anyway, Haxus’s reports about a mission that went awry can’t wait until after Sendak is done with his bath, so Haxus dares to interrupt.





	Waterproof Heart

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Galra Reverse Bang for PrincelyAffairs' wonderful art of Sendak relaxing in a bath, [here!](http://princely-affairs.tumblr.com/post/178029221358/my-piece-for-the-galrareversebang-event-sendak)
> 
> Beta: Revasnaslan

Haxus turned the bath bomb over in his hands before dropping it into the tub and watching it float around, spewing purple dust and fizzy bubbles. He swirled his hand around in the bathtub, testing the temperature of the water. Cold, as Sendak had requested.

He wasn’t sure that drawing a bath was typical of lieutenant duties. It seemed as though Sendak expected him to tend to his every whim. This wasn’t what he signed up for when he was pulled out of his squadron and offered a chance to work alongside Sendak, the greatest commander in the Galra Empire. He had accepted without hesitation, thinking of the propaganda poster of Sendak in his room that had seen far more of Haxus in compromising positions than Haxus would like to admit. 

Then the rumors had begun to follow him. Sendak was known to cycle through his lieutenants faster than an engine’s turbine, either leaving them to die on missions or simply kicking them out because they didn’t suit his preference. Haxus had his reasons to believe that things would be different for him, but he still couldn’t afford to neglect any of Sendak’s orders.

Once the tub was almost full to the brim, with just barely enough room for Sendak to get in it without it overflowing, Haxus turned off the tap. He couldn’t blame Sendak for needing a break after they returned from the mission that had everyone in the Empire, including Zarkon himself, banging on their door demanding to know why they had failed such a trivial task. 

They were only supposed to stop the rebels from blowing up a quintessence refinement plant on a marshland planet on their way back from their supply route. Sendak’s fleet putting down rebel forces was supposed to be like using a grenade to kill a gnat. It should have been easy, but they were too late. When they got there, the rebels had flooded the factory, barricading off the sabotaged power core and its controls beneath a layer of water. 

For all his physical prowess, Sendak couldn’t swim. So, Haxus had been the one to swim down to the control center and try to shut it down while Sendak fended off the rebels and guarded Haxus’s post from the floor above. Haxus had been ticks away from getting the power core stabilized again, when he began to feel lightheaded, and the lights of the controls faded into blackness. The last sensation he consciously registered was Sendak’s oversized prosthetic hand closing around his waist, and the wave of heat that blew over them when they escaped into the marsh while the plant exploded behind them. 

Sendak and Haxus had made it out alive, but so had the rebels. Sendak’s arm was ruined and the plant was in smithereens. All because Sendak, for some unfathomable reason, decided to abandon his post to save Haxus. 

It wasn’t until much later, when the fog of almost drowning had worn off that Haxus realized the gravity of what had just happened. Now, the mission seemed far from insignificant when he was staring down the face of his own failure. 

_Victory or death._ Surely a commander as successful as Sendak had gone through many lieutenants who were willing to lay down their lives for the Galra Empire; the rumors said as much. Surely Sendak knew not to make such a foolish mistake. But here Haxus was, still standing, in spite of the fact that it cost them the mission. 

The door slid open to reveal Sendak standing in the hall, and the expression on his face was not one of mercy. He merely growled in greeting towards Haxus, and shoved him aside with his shoulder as he made his way to the tub. So much for showing any gratitude.

Haxus shifted back and forth on his feet while Sendak leaned down to dip his organic hand in the water. “Is it suitable?” Haxus queried, barely keeping the tremor out of his voice.

“It will have to do,” Sendak said. He glanced over his shoulder, and pinned Haxus under the gaze of his red mechanical eye. “A little privacy?” he demanded gruffly.

Haxus nodded rapidly and dashed out of the bathroom, closing the door behind him. He leaned his back against the door and felt how fast his heart was beating from that brief confrontation, how he was still catching his breath as if he’d just been running. 

Unfortunately, preparing Sendak’s bath was as much of a break as Haxus was going to get. He held his breath as he reached under his breastplate and pulled out the datapad he had stashed there. Dozens of messages from members of their fleet and from Imperial Command awaited him. Haxus retreated to his study and responded to the ones he could. But most of them wanted to know Sendak’s perspective on the matter, which Haxus didn’t understand any better than they did. They all wanted Sendak’s personal report, _now_ , not when he was done with his two-varga bath.

Haxus made his way back down the hallway to the bathroom and pressed his ear to the door. He should have been able to hear the movement of the water, but all he heard on the other side was silence. For a moment he worried that maybe Sendak had been injured in the battle, but had hidden his wounds and then passed out in the tub. 

Haxus pushed the thought from his mind. He shouldn’t be worried about Sendak; the commander could take care of himself. Haxus ought to be more worried about saving his own skin by getting these reports done. Either way, both thoughts led in the same direction. He pressed his hand against the panel to unlock the door. 

Sendak had made it clear that he didn’t like to have his private time interrupted. Haxus had seen him brutally accost his subordinates for less. Bracing himself, Haxus slowly pushed the door open. 

Sendak didn’t notice him at first. Haxus hesitated in the doorway to assess the situation before he proceeded, or so he told himself while he unabashedly devoured Sendak with his eyes. 

Haxus’s first thought was that he had never seen Sendak look so vulnerable. Up until now, Haxus had only seen him in his armor, which made him look even bulkier than he already was, and wielding a prosthetic arm that was almost as big as Haxus himself. That arm, as well as the apparatus that attached to his shoulder and held up the large limb with a band of quintessence, were now resting on a tray under a heat lamp, drying off the water damage from the mission. 

The arm looked a lot less intimidating when it was deactivated. It also made Haxus realize how little of Sendak’s imposing presence was his limb enhancement, and how much of it was Sendak himself. His confident posture, his threatening scowls and glares, all were a conscious effort by Sendak to make sure no one dared to question his authority—and all were absent now. 

This was Sendak with his guard down. Sendak when not expecting to be interrupted or needing to keep up appearances was like a different Galra. Haxus’s eyes couldn’t help but linger on the remnant of Sendak’s left arm, and he hoped the expression on his face wouldn’t be read as one of pity. The emotion he felt was admiration toward Sendak for surviving whatever had given him those scars, mingled with a gut-wrenching sorrow that he had to. 

Haxus walked toward him, holding the datapad in his hands close to his chest like a shield. Sendak was soaking in the bathtub, with a rather malicious grin on his face. A small object was curled in his hand. Haxus stepped closer, and saw that Sendak was strangling a rubber toy animal so hard that its eyes were popping out. He was _talking_ to it as well, muttering insults, and Haxus thought he heard him refer to the toy as _Commander Duflax_.

Haxus snorted out a laugh, and it was that noise rather than the sound of the door opening or his footsteps that finally caught Sendak’s attention. Sendak flinched, splashing a large amount of water from the overly full bathtub onto the floor. His ears pinned back against the sides of his head. He quickly tried to stash the toy duflax behind him in the tub, but when it floated back up, he resorted to sitting on it. 

“Haxus, what are you doing in here?!” Sendak sputtered, his one organic eye wide with alarm.

“Sorry to interrupt your bath, but I need you to sign these reports,” said Haxus, offering the datapad to Sendak.

Sendak took it in his hand with a noncommittal hum. Then, like a petulant child, he tossed it into the bathtub near his feet. Haxus watched with chagrin as the datapad sank to the bottom of the tub and the holographic screen fizzled out.

Haxus reached into the tub and fished it out. Quartermaster Janka was going to wonder how they managed to go through so many of these things, Haxus thought with a sigh. As if Sendak snapping them in half in frustration wasn’t bad enough. 

“The reports are still on our computer, and you still need to do them, as soon as possible,” Haxus insisted. He bit back all the other retorts that were curling on his tongue, afraid that he would get snapped at for mouthing off to his commander. 

Sendak rose from the bathtub like a leviathan, his fur so waterlogged that the water ran down in rivulets from stray strands of hair. He stepped out of the tub, and stood there while the water slowly trickled into the drain on the floor. 

The skin on Haxus’s cheeks tingled as his eyes wandered over Sendak’s chiseled form. He looked smaller without his fur puffing out everywhere, but to make up for it, the fur clung to his skin, revealing every angle and curve. 

“Well? Don’t just stand there staring,” said Sendak. 

“I beg your pardon, Commander?” Haxus asked. 

Then, Sendak’s whole body shook in one abrupt movement, sending droplets of water flying all over the walls of the room and Haxus’s clothes. He tugged on his damp uniform, and then looked up at Sendak dourly. “What did you do that for?” Haxus muttered. 

“Since you were in such a hurry,” Sendak said sarcastically. “I’m never going to get to those reports if you make me dry myself with one arm, and it takes me three vargas to air dry.” 

“Are you asking me to dry you?” Haxus asked, his eyebrow raised in confusion.

“Do I need to give you an order?” Sendak replied simply.

Of course he didn’t. While he couldn’t understand what Sendak was thinking that led him to be so brazen towards him, Haxus wouldn’t pass up a chance like this.

He pulled a towel off of the rack and quickly wrapped it around Sendak’s waist. There were some areas that Sendak would have to take care of himself, no matter how tempted Haxus might be at the idea of touching them. 

While Sendak did just that, leaning over to dry himself from the waist down, Haxus attempted to dry the thick fur on Sendak’s back. He grabbed another towel and reached up, but he couldn’t reach Sendak’s head, even with his arms outstretched. “Commander Sendak…” Haxus began. When Sendak’s ear twitched and he turned his head toward him, Haxus said, “Would you mind sitting down?”

With a grunt, Sendak sat down on a cushioned stool that was stashed in the bathroom for this very purpose. Haxus stood behind him, rubbing the towel in circles over Sendak’s back. He felt how tense Sendak’s muscles were through the fabric, and dug the pads of his fingers into the flesh, sometimes using his claws to untangle mats of hair. Haxus could see the way Sendak visibly relaxed at the attention, and it was almost endearing. 

It had been so long since Haxus had been this close to someone. Physical contact was a need for the Galra, but it wasn’t one that the Empire recognized. It was considered a sign of weakness to crave touch. Sendak melting into putty in Haxus’s hands was so at odds with his image of the Galra Empire’s golden commander that Haxus was caught off guard, but he couldn’t complain.

Sendak had remained still and cooperative through the entire process, but Haxus could feel him tense when he brushed the towel over his remnant arm. However, the fur there had to get dry just as much as everywhere else, and Sendak had quite the forest growing in his armpits, so his arms were in need of special attention. 

Still, it wouldn’t hurt to ask. “Do you mind if I dry your arm, sir?” Haxus asked, his voice far softer than he meant it. Sendak was no fragile thing in need of careful handling. 

“If you must,” Sendak grunted.

Haxus rubbed the towel over his arm again, and Sendak flinched. At first Haxus thought he had hit a particularly sensitive part of his arm, and he withdrew. He looked down at Sendak’s face, half expecting to see him snarling at him. Instead, Sendak’s gaze was distant, not directed at Haxus, but the empty space behind him. 

Haxus longed to tell Sendak that in his eyes he was whole, that he was stronger for what he had overcome and not lesser for what he was missing, but that might overstep his boundaries. Really, nothing they had done today seemed typical of a lieutenant’s duty to his commander, so Haxus was utterly adrift in terms of boundaries.

“May I continue?” Haxus asked, his eyes probing Sendak for any trace of discomfort.

Sendak gave a curt nod.

Haxus draped the towel over Sendak’s head, and began to dry his ears. He giggled silently to himself at the way Sendak looked, with just the shape of his ears sticking up under the towel. One of them flicked in slight irritation but he didn’t snap. Slowly, Haxus began to rub Sendak’s ears, and he felt a tremor go up Sendak’s spine. Sendak leaned back against Haxus’s chest, and Haxus thought he could hear him purring. It helped that he wasn’t facing Sendak yet, otherwise he would probably lose his nerve and run out of the room. 

Haxus stepped around to the other side of Sendak. He tried to ignore the implications of standing between Sendak’s legs, with only a towel separating their bodies. When Sendak was sitting on the stool, his head only came up to Haxus’s collarbones, but Haxus had to kneel down to reach his chest and stomach, returning him to his usual place, beneath Sendak. 

Except in this moment, aside from their heights, he didn’t really feel that way. He didn’t feel like the new lieutenant who was only there to serve until a better one replaced him. Sendak’s gaze was level with him. When Haxus looked at him for permission to touch the sensitive area of his stomach, Sendak’s one eye looking back at him was steady with trust. Trust he hadn’t earned. 

_Why did you save me?_ The question that he had turned over in his mind since returning from the mission screamed at him, pressing at the back of his lips. If only he could ask, and understand what it was about himself that Sendak thought was worth protecting. 

Haxus’s nerves twisted into a bundle as he leaned closer to Sendak to wipe off the water droplets dangling from his chest ruff. Then, he felt Sendak rest his chin on top of his head. Sendak’s hand came to rest on the small of Haxus’s back. He pinned him there, on his knees on the bathroom floor, while the contact made Haxus’s heart feel like it was going to burst. Haxus dropped the towel into Sendak’s lap, too startled to touch him or move. 

Haxus felt as if he was drowning again. He tried to breathe but no air entered his lungs. His head spun, like he was losing his grip on consciousness. He reached out for something to steady himself, and his hand landed on Sendak’s thigh.

“What are you doing, Commander?” Haxus croaked out, his voice hoarse.

Sendak pulled him closer, and Haxus’s face was buried in his chest fur, still slightly cool and damp from the bath but soft and radiating heat from his skin. With his ear pressed against Sendak’s chest, even through the thick layer of fur, Haxus could hear Sendak’s pulse thrumming at a frantic pace, almost to match Haxus’s own. 

“Just let me have this,” Sendak whispered. “Let me remind myself that you are here, that I didn’t lose you back there.”

“I was prepared to give my life for the mission if I had to,” Haxus insisted. “I would be easily replaced.”

“No. You cannot be replaced,” Sendak replied. 

“Why not?” Haxus breathed. “You have had so many others…”

“You are not like the others,” said Sendak. “You respect me.”

“Did your other lieutenants not respect you?” Haxus asked. He had done away with formalities. In any other situation he would be punished for asking his commander so many questions, but he had to know.

“Respect is not the same thing as fear, or pity,” said Sendak. “The others followed orders. But none of them ever looked me directly in the eyes like you do.” Sendak’s hand trailed up Haxus’s back and came to rest against his cheek, tilting Haxus’s jaw up towards him. Sendak’s eye contact captivated Haxus with its intense earnestness.

“No one has ever made me feel the way you do,” Sendak said.

“And what way is that?” Haxus asked breathlessly, his cheeks prickling with warmth. 

This was highly inappropriate behavior for a commander and his lieutenant, but behind the closed doors of the bathroom, Haxus would allow himself to indulge. 

Haxus closed his eyes and parted his lips in anticipation. When Sendak’s lips brushed against his, it was the opposite of his furious demeanor—it was soft, filled with hope and hesitation. The touch felt barely there, and when their lips separated again, it took Haxus a moment to open his eyes, like he was still waiting for more. But what more could he want? This was Sendak—the most powerful commander in the Empire, the one Haxus had idolized for decaphoebs, and he wanted _Haxus_. 

~

A towel wasn’t enough to get Sendak completely dry, so Haxus retrieved the electric fur dryer from its holster on the wall. The warm current of air was relaxing for both of them as Haxus moved the dryer over every inch of Sendak’s fur, running his fingers through it to fluff it up. It felt like some of the tension between them had abated, but Haxus still felt a spark every time his fingers brushed against Sendak’s skin, every time their eyes met. Sendak didn’t shy away from arching into Haxus’s touch or purring when he rubbed his neck. Even though the sound of the dryer was loud enough to cover it up, he could feel Sendak’s chest vibrating. 

Once Sendak was fully dried and fluffed, getting him back into a clean undersuit presented a greater challenge. He asked Haxus to turn around when he dropped the towel and pulled on his underpants, but hadn’t managed to get the suit over his calves when he grumbled in frustration and demanded Haxus’s assistance again. His fur got stuck under the tight suit, which seemed dreadfully uncomfortable and made Haxus grateful for his short, velvety fur. They ended up sitting Sendak back down on the stool while Haxus rolled the suit up over his legs, then pulled the sleeves over his arms, including the sock-like one designed to support his robot limb. Sendak stood up, and tried to pull up the zipper himself, but it appeared that his arm wasn’t flexible enough. 

“What did you ever do without me?” Haxus whispered into the fur on Sendak’s back as he zipped up the suit.

Sendak turned around, and his hand came to rest on Haxus’s spine. With surprising grace and strength for one hand, he pulled Haxus against his chest. Haxus’s feet dangled in midair next to Sendak’s knees, and though he had no reason to fear being dropped, he wrapped his arms around Sendak’s neck, weaving his fingers into the soft fur and clinging to him for dear life. 

“I don’t know, but I hope I never have to go back to that,” Sendak murmured. “Stay with me, Haxus.”

This was too much. Too much for Haxus’s poor heart to handle. He felt like it was about to beat out of his chest, and his lungs were suffocating again. So he sought out his only breath of air: he pressed his lips against Sendak’s once more. This time was on his terms, more demanding and fierce, and Sendak was receptive to it, yielding to Haxus’s fangs nipping at his lip. When Haxus pulled away, Sendak was the one who looked awestruck.

Sendak placed Haxus’s feet back on the floor, and his fond gaze was almost unnerving as Haxus helped him affix his armor plates to his body, and finally attach the apparatus that supported his mechanical arm. Haxus was unable to lift the deactivated arm himself, so Sendak held it near the limb while Haxus flipped on the switch. The quintessence beam charged up and linked with Sendak’s body, recovered from the water damage. Sendak stood before him, every inch the tailored image of a commander, but Haxus still saw him in a different light and that would never change. 

As much as Haxus wanted to remain in this moment, the reams of reports beckoned. “I think we should get back to work… Is there anything else you require, Commander?” Haxus asked, his voice still light, floating on the ecstasy of Sendak’s touch. 

Then the door to the bathroom burst off of its hinges. Haxus stepped away from Sendak, standing next to him at attention. 

“You were taking forever in here! Don’t you realize that the rest of us need to use the bathroom too?!” yelled Throk, who had appeared in the doorway. 

“This is my bathroom! What in Emperor Zarkon’s name do you think you’re doing barging in like that?!” Sendak snapped back at him.

“I can’t help it that this is the best bathroom in central command. Or that they were serving spicy _zalik_ in the cafeteria today,” said Throk, pushing his way past Sendak to the toilet, doubled over even more than he usually was. “By the way, speaking of Zarkon, he’s looking for you.”

Sendak sighed heavily. They would have to face the consequences of their behavior eventually. Leaving Throk to defile his bathroom, Sendak made his way out the door, while Haxus followed and closed it behind him. Sendak’s hand brushed against the small of Haxus’s back, and Haxus fell in step beside his commander.


End file.
